Agreed. Out of most of the corners the M135i pulls away. Reality is, on paper, the M135i pretty much matches the M3 for acceleration, etc, and that is probably with BMW making some 'paper adjustments' to make sure the M135i doesn't out do the M3 on paper...

The hatchback driver has a slightly different line around the track, going for a later apex than the M3. That would explain why the M3 catches up under braking, and struggles to keep up at the corner exits.

Also i think the m3 was a lot of times in 1 gear too high. Having owned a e90 m3 before and now the m135i i can tell you how important it is for the m3 to be in right gear. If you are under 5.5k rpm it doesnt go that fast really.

Very interesting! Driving abilities, style, tempo, all come into play, but in pretty much every situation, the M3 couldn't catch-up and pass. Was better under brakes.

That's right. I thought the camera car backed off a couple of times through corners when the driver of the M135i kept the throttle nailed, but when both cars accelerated out of corners, it was clear that the M135i was losing nothing to the M3.

And Darkhold, your point being in the right rev range for maximum torque in the M3 is probably spot on, but again that demonstrates how tractable the M135i is. It also makes the debate about whether this is a proper M-car one for the anal-retentives. Who gives a flying **** what it's called when it goes like this?

Most fast drivers in BMWs turn in rather early and trail brake a lot. The late apex approach is more of a Porsche thing.

You don't want to be turning in early and cocking up the exit by running wide,with the zero run off on most corners at the ring.
You will just become the friend of the ADAC man,plenty on YouTube made the same mistake
The guys looked like they was just having a steady fun lap filming not racing

You don't want to be turning in early and cocking up the exit by running wide,with the zero run off on most corners at the ring.
You will just become the friend of the ADAC man,plenty on YouTube made the same mistake
The guys looked like they was just having a steady fun lap filming not racing

Yes, I agree that the late apex is the safest approach. Still, the fastest BMW drivers often turn in rather early. Not recommended unless people really know what they are doing. It is particularly useful when going from a fast section to a slower section.

Here's a subsequent video, this time with the M135i as the chasing camera car.

Harder to judge, as both cars are baulked in traffic quite frequently and I sense the M-lite driver backing off quite a bit (maybe driving 7/10s), but the M-lite's straight line acceleration remains very impressive

I think BMW has judged the M135i perfectly. Its supposed to be positioned between a regular Series car and 'M' hooligan and that looks like its been very well judged. I would guess from the video that neither car is driven at 10/10 but would also assume that its only at 10/10ths that the real differences between the 2 cars will show up i.e on limit handling. At that point, superior brakes, suspension and M diff. will definitely favour the M3.

However, press a little button and the M135i can back off the racer to become a highly competent M/way and back road cruiser. The M on the other hand can never relax and always remains fully primed for action, with all that infers for comfort and economy.

I also believe that the M135i may feel quite a bit faster than the M in everyday use, due to the huge dollops of torque available from 2k upwards. Below 5k my Z4M felt 'unspectacular' and it always took the driver stirring the gearbox pot to get it up and flying. In the M135i this is absolutely not necessary and from 2k on its always ready for action.

All in all, I think BMW has done a superb job on the M135i. An M-diff option would be the icing on the cake but that would likely make the M3 a much harder sell.